No Guts, No Glory!

I'm making guts! My friend Sara calls the stuffing in a stuffed bell pepper GUTS and now I'm hooked on the name. Is it a Southern thing? Stuffed Bell Peppers?

I seriously haven't had a stuffed bell pepper since my brother was regularly sitting at the dining room table. I'm guessing 1984ish. Anyway...I can't reach my mother to get "the family recipe", so I am winging it and not really trying to get that version now...mainly because Mama would kill me if I called it GUTS, so I might as well make something different or I will hear about it for sure! And until I get the Lott recipe there is no point in me trying to recreate it...because that recipe is the best. You know how you taste something once and love it, then any other doesn't taste as good even if it really is better. That's how this is. Mama makes the best Stuffed Bell Peppers hands down and no one will convince me otherwise. 

Another phone call to Mama but still no answer...it is cocktail hour, probably on the porch with the paper by now. I'm on my own. Scary! Now, mouth watering I think of what Mama's pepper holds. I'm guessing the basics are hamburger meat, onion, bell pepper and rice with a tomato base of either paste or sauce. Hmm, gotta make it different so I'm not too disappointed it's not the real deal.

My attempt at something called Guts:
Sauté onions (very obvious rich is not touching this) and bell pepper in olive oil. I had half of a squash and zucchini so I threw that in there too. The plan was hamburger meat except I had left over ground sausage from weekend brunch. Now it's definitely different. The guts are all in the pan sautéing but all looks a little dry. Um...no tomato paste or sauce (which is rare). I do have cherry tomatoes, but they don't have enough juice..hmm. AHA! ZingZang! Decided...cherry tomatoes and ZingZang equals a damn fine tomato paste/sauce, right?

I cook my cored bell peppers in the oven for about 15 minutes at 350º to get them started. When sauteing is done, I stuff it and top with cheese and cross my fingers. Hello! It's actually good! A total gamble paid off. It is nothing like the original but it's quite tasty. Am sorta glad I didn't have Mama's recipe holding me down. Proves I can do a few things on my own.

NO GUTS, NO GLORY.

I'm still going to get Mama's recipe and then maybe I'll remember to take a photo!